Vintage Rallies

Vintage Rallies is a privately owned rally company run by Rich and Jean Taylor of Sharon, Connecticut, who plan and present every event themselves, per their 2027 brochure. Each event is a five-day, 1,000-mile tour and rally for sports cars built in 1997 or earlier, any exotic, or any Porsche sports car. The company also lists the Texas 1000, Mountain Mille, North West Passage and Forza Mille among its events on its website.

History and the cause

The first New England 1000 ran in 1993, and the brochure says the company has organized 140 rallies since. Each event benefits different local charities in North America, and the organizer gives the total raised as well over $3,500,000 so far. It does not break that figure down by event or year.

The 2027 events

Texas Bluebonnets, the 22nd annual Texas event, runs 11 to 16 April 2027 and replaces Ozark Passage, which had been planned for May 2027. The group assembles on the Sunday afternoon at Tapatio Springs outside Boerne, Texas, then loops through the Hill Country to Rio Frio, on to Blanco, Wimberley, Luckenbach and two nights at the Albert Hotel in Fredericksburg, then drives the Twisted Sisters loop on Ranch Roads 335, 336 and 337 before a final night at The Kendall Inn in Boerne. It ends after breakfast on Friday 16 April.

The 35th New England 1000 runs 3 to 8 October 2027. The organizer expects to assemble on Sunday 3 October at Saybrook Point Resort in Old Saybrook, Connecticut, after the Audrain Concours in Newport, and says it will move the rally if Audrain’s date changes. The route runs through Rhinebeck and Hyde Park to two nights at Mohonk Mountain House, through the Catskills and Adirondacks to Fort Ticonderoga and the Sagamore Resort on Lake George, then back across the Berkshires to Saybrook Point.

What a rally week is like

The organizer describes all-inclusive weeks: hotel rooms, breakfast, lunch and dinner, wine and beer with dinner, snacks, route books, a luggage truck and gifts. All driving is on paved two-lane roads, with no highways, big cities, dirt or gravel, and the cars do not drive at night. Easy time-speed-distance stages run on public roads, with occasional closed-course special stages, or entrants can simply follow the pre-driven route. Trucks and vintage car mechanics travel with each event, and a complimentary sports car is supplied if an entrant’s car cannot continue. Each event is limited to 50 cars.

How entry works and what it costs

An entry is reserved by returning the entry form with a $1,000 deposit. The total for each team in 2027 is $9,500 for one car and two people in a double room, due six weeks before the rally. Single rooms and upgrades cost extra. Cancellations within 60 days of the start forfeit the deposit, and within 30 days the full amount, though forfeited amounts can be applied to another Vintage Rallies event within a year.

The rules

Drivers need a valid US or foreign license, and cars must be insured and registered for public roads, per the brochure. It does not publish further driving rules.